Eden of the East, Kaiji, Heaven's Memo Pad - just to name a few. Granted, I have seen some people talk about Eden of the East and Kaiji but not a whole lot. Sadly, I don't think I've met anyone who has ever talked about Heaven's Memo Pad. I admit it probably isn't considered to be in the upper echelon of anime, but it was quite enjoyable for me and it had such a beautiful opening and a catchy ending.

The two major anime Shinji Takamatsu directed, School Rumble and (particularly) Gintama, are the best I've encountered in their field. I don't remember ever laughing out loud so much as I did at those two. The characters are enchanting. Azumanga Daioh and Nichijou win out in the slice of life category for being intrinsically adorable.

Also the animation director Masaaki Yuasa's productions are ingenious. The Tatami Galaxy (my favourite anime series ever), Kaiba, Cat Soup and MindGame distil the very best anime has to offer. No cliches or textbook fan service, conceptual excellence and a stunning, albeit often confronting stylistic hybrid animation characterise his stuff.